i really like the instrumentals. some of the songs, though, i'm not too keen on (save for "hallucinations" and "communist friends"). the betrayer, for one, kaki kinda sounds a little too forced in her urgency. not saying she forced it or that it's pretentious. but i think she's a little more intelligent with her words than the lyrics in the verses. some of the material on this record is extremely beautiful and moving, but i know that kaki is definitely better than a substantial amount of the 'rock out' on this record. i say this out of complete praise for her catalogue, and out of appreciation for her musicianship. i'm just a little disappointed.

i want to also add that i detest a song like 'death head'. it sounds like a horrid throwback to 2002 era K-ROK radio rock which is something i thought we really progressed away from. not only musically, but intellectually. those sounds are the sounds of uneducated dude-bros high on nu-metal. perhaps i'm being too harsh, but im upset that a song like that would be part of kaki's extensive repertoire. an artist who was so magnificent in her wide reaching capabilty. we all saw what she could do with such projects like daysleeper. and the shoegazey drones and walls of sound she created in 'zeitgeist' and the live versions of 'you don't have to be afraid' and 'these are the armies of the tyrannized'. seriously. her skills did not have to end up in a song like 'death head'. trust me, i love loud things that reference world war 2 atrocities (swans, death in june) but that song is pretty lame.

i like dead head just because of that. i do have to agree with you when you say that the songs on this album are nothing in comparison with songs like zeitgeist, i like those better too. but i can still appreciate the other maybe less educated (like you say) stuff.maybe it's because i used to listen to a lot of metal and nu-metal.